Archive for sweating episode
HyperhidrosisAndMe Weekly Spotlight: Hyperhidrosis-Friendly Footwear
Posted by: · on July 19, 2010 | CommentsThis week’s spotlight features picks from my Footwear page that I have found to be especially “friendly” to those of us who must be very careful about the choices we make– especially now, in the dog days of summer.
My very favorite “find” for Hyperhidrosis is the absorbent flip-flop. As this type of sandal became wildly popular a few years ago, I felt really sorry for myself that I could not participate. They looked so comfortable. EVERYONE was wearing them. Remember the Northwestern Ladies LaCrosse Team, who went to the White House and were photographed shod in flip-flops en masse? I remember looking at that photo and realizing how truly different I was from pretty much everyone else. These young girls, looking cool and confident in their sundresses and flip-flops, posing with the President… wow, I would have been hiding in the bathroom wearing all black, shoes and socks. Oh, boo-hoo. If you’re reading this with a knowing smirk, you know what I mean. I know, OK, I’m over it!
A teeny, tiny taste of redemption came my way when I discovered that Adidas makes flip flops (and slides too) with an absorbent footbed called FitFOAM. I’ll tell you, it was so great to be able to actually wear flip-flops and not have one bit of worry that anyone would know! You can find them at Amazon
Another shoe brand worth mentioning is Geox, available at Amazon in Women’s
). I also have a pair of flats, which I wear without socks (because I am brainless and partially in denial). When– not if– I have an episode while wearing them, they do tend to get swampy, of course (eeew) but they will, amazingly, dry out in a short amount of time, and often while I am still wearing them (unless the sweat appears again). Just a hunch, but I would stick with flats or athletic wear… I can’t see how a high wedge could really breathe, and I don’t know if the sandals are absorbent enough to be worn with a bare (sweat-prone) foot. As for the rest, they are a bit pricey, but it may be worth splurging on a pair or two.
I also discuss Summer Soles
So, there’s a snapshot of my picks for footwear! Used in conjunction with Summer Soles
Life with Hyperhidrosis: The Struggle to be “Normal”
Posted by: · on July 15, 2010 | CommentsLast night I went downtown to meet up with my husband and have dinner with him and his new co-workers. Being aware that I was meeting several new, potentially important people in my husband’s new career would be a more than slightly stressful prospect for anyone. For me (or anyone dealing with Hyperhidrosis), it was a potential nightmare.
I woke up this morning with many thoughts and emotions swimming around in my head. Foremost was the question: Did I pull it off? If you also have HH, you know what I mean by that: Could anyone tell I was sweating? I would venture a guess and say, I don’t think so. Whew– I think… That is half my problem; you can never really know for certain what other people notice or what their judgment is if they do notice. I try to tell myself that I don’t care, but sometimes, I can’t help it. I do.
Well, if no one noticed last night, the only reason I was able to pull that off was because of what I wore and how I conducted myself. It is truly amazing the degree that clothing choices can make a difference in a situation like last night. And last night was like the Hyperhidrosis Trifecta: 1.) Hot, extremely humid night that kicked off with waiting for a train which was, naturally, late 2.) Seeing husband’s new boss for only the second time, meeting his wife, along with about a dozen other people at the company where my husband just started (thankfully, every single one was really, really nice) 3.) Sitting down in a very hot, packed restaurant and staying seated for about 3 hours.
How many times did I half-stand and pull the fabric off my legs? Twist my skirt around? I was startled by how bad this episode was and how nobody else seemed to be overheated. It could have been so much worse, though. If I had not worn a jersey knit, beautifully patterned maxi dress that I was confident would show nothing, I would have sat there in a near-panic for the entire evening. The food was great, the company I was in was even better; I was enjoying myself in that compartmentalized way that you do when you are struggling with HH silently. You know– trying hard to ignore the discomfort, acting as though you haven’t a care in the world, pushing down the anxiety and the sadness. Pasting that smile on your face.
By the end of the night, I was exhausted. I know my advice is all over this website: Hyperhidrosis is just a disorder… It is what you have, not who you are… If you are uncomfortable about hiding an episode, try honesty… You are not alone… I believe all of these things. I try to practice, literally, what I preach. Sometimes, though, I just yearn to be what I know all the sprays, lotions, products, and even surgery can never make me be: normal. But that’s ok. It will have to be. So, I do the best I can, wearing two very important components: the right clothes and a smile.
Recipe for a Good Old-Fashioned HH Episode, Post-ETS
Posted by: · on July 11, 2010 | CommentsIf you ever thought that undergoing ETS would end the good ol’ fight-or-fight emotional sweating episode, read on, my friend. As I have said in a few messages here and there, but need to say Loud and Clear right here on the blog, please do not assume that having ETS will cure you from Hyperhidrosis. Sure, there may be some lucky individuals who have had sympathectomies that have mild compensatory sweating, dry feet and dry hands, but I believe that they are in the (lucky) minority. Compensatory Sweating still occurs for most of us, and its patterns and frequency are all over the board, from what I can guess. For me, it hasn’t been bad, but I am still vulnerable to the occasional nasty, unforeseen attack.
Today, I got zapped. Here’s the recipe for my…
Old Fashioned Sweating Episode
- 1 linen top likely to show moisture
- 1 pair olive khaki pants guaranteed to show sweat
- ADD 2 cups of Extra Virgin Idiocy in assuming this would be a safe choice for Church in the middle of July
- WHISK together, with a Dash of Arrogance that I no longer Need to Worry About These Things
- FOLD into mix:
- 1 missing 9 year old child whom husband, responsible for bringing the Rest of the Children to Mass while you drop off youngest child to birthday party, mistakenly leaves alone at home
- 1 heaping Tablespoon of Angst that said child is Hysterical at Home, Alone (while Freaked Out Husband leaves to fetch her)
- 1 well-meaning Usher at Church that asks you to Bring Up the Gifts!!!
- 6 cups Severe Anxiety that the Entire Congregation will have an Unobstructed View of Damp…ahem…Pants as you walk up the aisle bringing up gifts
- ADD to this,
- 2 more people, aforementioned husband and child (amused by events rather than hysterical), crowding into the pew accompanied by waves of Body Heat
- MARINATE in mounting Panic and typical Fight-or-Flight Trapped Feeling whilst sweat pops out literally Everywhere, including HANDS that are NOT supposed to SWEAT anymore…
- COOK for approximately 40 minutes in Warm and Humid Church
……and Voilà! You have one fully formed, rich, decadent Post-ETS, Put-You-Right-Back-in-Your-Place Sweating Episode!
Oh, and in case you were wondering…..Yes. I did bring up the Gifts, all the while holding up an imaginary Middle Finger at my Hyperhidrosis (yes, Imaginary, it was Church!). And, no, the moisture was not showing as I had (silently) convinced myself it would during that 1/2 hour I was supposed to be worshiping.
FYI, on a serious note: ETS disconnects the nerve(s) that make you sweat in your hands (and underarms and head, depending on the specific surgery)— depending on the technique, whether they are cut, removed, clamped, or merely snipped (as mine were), the surgery does not re-set your overactive Sympathetic Nervous System. Your sweating may end up being more under control, as mine is, because the absence of hand sweat (or blushing) lowers the anxiety and the triggers that normally cause an episode are no longer usually there. But Science has not come up with anything that cures the basic malfunction that is responsible for Primary Hyperhidrosis: an abnormally overactive Sympathetic Nervous System.
In short, our thermostats are broken! Every “cure” that we try out, every treatment, really just ranges from Band-Aids to duct tape. Sometimes these things don’t work; often they do, but with the occasional glitch. …or zap…!
